The driver of the truck, which belongs to PJ Murphy Transportation of Methuen, was heading north on Route 1 when something caused him to lose control, crash, and roll the truck across the guardrail and into the southbound lane of the divided highway around 2:15 a.m., said Procopio said.

The driver, whose name has not been released, was killed. Several other people from at least four vehicles were taken to hospitals in Boston and Melrose, police said.

Fuel from the crash seeped into the storm-drain system and pooled at various locations nearby, causing several more serious fires, Procopio said.

At one point, a fireball could be seen from a greenhouse. At least one home was damaged, and fuel sparked several brush fires in the area. Fuel also collected in a nearby stream and ignited, sending a plume of smoke rising into the sky. Two firefighters were also hurt battling the fires.

Boston.com filed this fire video from the scene:

The incident was cleaned up enough to reopen the roadway around 10:30 am, but there were a lot of calls coming in for (natural) gas odor in several propeties. The gas company thinks the explosion may have cracked an underground gas main and they are trying to locate the leak.